Tumescent Liposuction or “Tumescent Liposculpting” procedure is one of the safest, most effective methods of liposuction, and has been available since the mid-1980s. Although tumescent liposuction is relatively new in the world of cosmetic surgery, it has become extremely popular because of its unique combination of safety and accuracy.

Tumescent liposuction is simplified compared to other liposuction methods. The tumescent liposuction advantage is two-fold: first; it only requires local anesthesia, and second; it is minimally invasive requiring only a few tiny incisions.  Those factors reduce the recovery time to about 24-48 hours. All liposuction surgical techniques are meant to improve the body's contour by removing fat deposits located between the skin and muscle but the tumescent liposuction technique can do this much more accurately and remove more of the fat layer. This is possible because in tumescent liposuction, the patient is usually awake which allows the surgeon to feel the patient's muscle tone alongside the fat layer. This is a huge advantage of tumescent liposuction and really lets an experienced surgeon in the tumescent technique take more fat than tradition liposuction methods. When a patient is more sedated as with more traditional liposuction methods, the surgeon usually errs on the side of being more conservative in the removal of fat.

Other Benefits and Advantages of Tumescent Liposuction

In Tumescent liposuction patients do not need general anesthesia. Most patients receive no sedation or only minor sedation to help them relax and are completely comfortable and awake during the Tumescent liposuction surgery. Post operative discomfort after a tumescent liposuction is significantly reduced since the local anesthesia is effective for 8-16 hours after surgery. The suction tubes used in the tumescent liposuction technique are very thin and minimize the amount of trauma produced. The incisions usually heal nicely with minimal scarring. After a tumescent liposuction surgery patients can get up and walk out of the office themselves, and are usually back to their regular routine in a couple of days.

Tumescent liposuction provides several advantages over traditional liposuction:

Using local anesthesia in tumescent liposuction instead of general anesthesia eliminates nausea and other general-anesthesia-related side effects.

The recovery time is shorter with tumescent liposuction.

There is less blood and fluid loss in tumescent liposuction.

Use of antibacterial lidocaine in the tumescent liposuction technique may reduce the chance of infection.

Intravenous fluid replacement is not necessary with tumescent liposuction.

The swelling or tumescence of the fatty deposits amplifies the targeted areas for liposuction, thus reducing the risk of a secondary procedure.

The new cannula design with tumescent liposuction reduces bruising and swelling after surgery.

Smaller incisions result in less scarring.

Body Areas That Can Be Treated by Tumescent Liposuction

Neck and Jowls

Arms

Abdomen

Buttocks

Hips

Inner and Outer Thighs (saddle bags)

Knees

Legs

Flanks (love handles on men)

Enlarged Male Breasts (gynecomastia)

Tumescent liposuction can also be used in the treatment of a number of medical conditions, as well as aid in the performance of other, non-cosmetic surgical procedures.